February 23, 2012

Sinful Cupcakes

I am sorry for the long absence.  My family took a long weekend trip to Walla Walla to visit some friends.  And it always seems to take a few days to recover and get back in the swing of things.  We had a relaxing time–and when I say relaxing, I mean just sitting around, chatting, and eatinig food.  (Which was what we all needed!)  Matthew spent most of his time doing this:

Even Eric joined in for a bit.

We also spent time at the park, where Matthew learned how to go through a tunnel.  (His sideways hat just tells you how hip and cool he is.  We tried to fix it, but he liked it that way.  What do parents know about style anyway.)

I made these cupcakes quite some time ago, and thought that I’d share them with you while I recover from all the delicious food I ate.  I call these cupcakes Sinful because they are just that good, but really, they’re just a chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream.  Mmmm…Who can resist chocolate?  I know I can’t.

Continue reading →

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February 17, 2012

Organizing Recipes

My name is Holly and I am a recipe hoarder.  It started out innocently enough with just collecting cookbooks.  Then it grew to tearing recipes out of magazines.  And then it spilled over to the internet.  I would watch Food Network instead of studying for exams, make desserts instead of sleeping, and spend a lot of money on ingredients I had never heard of and only used once.  Then, about five years ago, I realized that I had amassed so many recipes that I felt like it was beginning to take over my kitchen.

It was at that point that I realized something had to give.  Did I actually try at least 1/3 of the recipes in the 30+ cookbooks I had?  When was the last time I looked through the numerous manila folders where I stashed all the magazine and internet recipes?  And then it hit me.  I had to do something.  It started with going through the cookbooks and deciding what to really keep, and what to give away.  (And the cookbooks that I never even opened were re-gifted.)  So after years of tinkering, I have come up with an organizing system that works for me.  And for those of you who are recipe hoarders as well, hopefully this will help you too.

My secret? I use binders, (many, in fact–and I have one solely dedicated to desserts), and manila folders.

For the recipes that I love and use (whether it be consistently, or just a few times), I put in a binder.  They are organized by subject and placed in sheet protectors.  I use Post-Its for tabs.

I like using sheet protectors because that way, if I spill food on it while cooking or baking, I can just wipe it off with a damp cloth and move on.  No harm done.  In the binders I’ve also included tips and tricks.  I especially like using information from the magazine Cooks Illustrated.  Continue reading →

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February 13, 2012

Rose Cupcakes

Roses are one of my favorite flowers.  In the late spring, one of my favorite things to do is walk around the Rose Garden in downtown Portland.  It’s amazing all the variety of colors and shapes in this one, rather large, garden.  I also like to see which ones are the oldest, (next to the bush there is a plaque with the name, variety, and year it was planted), and it amazes me that the gardeners can keep a few 100-year-old rose bushes alive.  I wish I had that kind of patience with a shrub.  I’m lucky if I can remember to water my indoor plants.  (In in my school classroom, forget about it.  I have fake plants instead.)

That’s why I stick to buttercream roses.  They are a lot less maintenance, and, of course, they’re edible, which in my eyes, makes it that much better.   To make buttercream roses, you’ll need 3 piping bags, red food coloring, and a 1M tip.  And since the flavor is vanilla, use real vanilla extract.  It’s the star of the show, so let the real, intense flavor shine through.  (I love Neilson-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla.  It makes the biggest difference!) If you think you’re frosting won’t be white enough, you can tint it white, but I like to just leave it the way it is.  To see a visual tutorial on getting the two-tone coloring, click here. Continue reading →

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February 9, 2012

Southern Banana Pudding

Today is my husband’s birthday.  And it’s not just any birthday, it’s his 30th birthday.  And just like any milestone birthday, this one is complete with pomp and circumstance, as well as a dose of anxiety, deep contemplation, and a little bit of sadness.  Eric’s new goal, now that he’s in his 30s, is to run a 100-mile race.  You know, ’cause that’s something not every person can do.  Apparently that isn’t hard enough though, so to make it more challenging, it has to be run in 24 hours.  (He’s been researching this for hours, and I cannot tell you how excited he was to find a race like this in our area.)  I told him that it’s a great goal and all, but maybe he should just run the marathon again and beat his last year’s time.

To help Eric ring in the 30s, we had a party last Saturday night, full of good friends and great food.  I made some lemon poppy-seed cupcakes with raspberry preserve filling, banana pudding, orange-cream cheese dip, and slushie punch.  Along with some chips and salsa–you know, to balance out all the sweet stuff.

I was first introduced to banana pudding when my sister, who now lives in North Carolina, made some on a visit home.  I couldn’t believe what I was missing!  Continue reading →

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February 7, 2012

Pink and Red Sugar Cookies

There are many times where I imagine what my 18-month-old son is saying.  Like when he’s walking around with his favorite car in his hand, saying, “Da dumm sweum shuew dadadum.”  And I respond, “Why, yes, your car can go really fast.”  Or when he asks a question, (which is easy to tell, because the inflection in his voice goes up at the end of his sentence and he looks at me expectantly), and I say, “Of course Daddy can give you another piggy-back ride.  As soon as he gets home.”

Today we went over to my friend’s house.  Both our boys are less than a week apart and it’s fun to see them grow and play together.  Today, Matthew got the opportunity to play with a pint-size kitchen.  He had a lot of fun sautéing vegetables and washing dishes, while talking all about it.  (Secretly, I want him to be a famous chef when he grows up.)

But no matter how many veggies, fruit, yogurt, or Cheerios he eats, his favorite food, by far, are sweets.  (It’s hard to blame him; it’s in his genes.)  While lying on the floor, desperately trying to eat a donut, he says something in a faint voice.  I interpret it to mean, “Mom, these plastic donuts are no substitution for the real thing.”

And he’s right.  There is no substitution for the real thing.  There’s something about homemade cookies–it evokes warm memories of childhood, and that deliciously sweet smell coming from the oven can not be compared.  These sugar cookies are made with lots of butter and sugar, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.  (If you want to see what recipe I use for the cookies and the royal icing, click here.)  I made these Valentine cookies for the blog winner, (congrats again Kathy!), and for a friend whose husband died of cancer not too long ago.  Cookies comfort too.

I made some conversation hearts. (They were my favorite as a kid!)

And some lace cookies. Continue reading →

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